Ryot welfare: Karnataka high court asks govt not to pick and choose

The high court, while hearing a case related to the justice of the Suvarna Bhoomi Yojane on Wednesday, observed that poverty is not a matter that could be addressed patchily, by picking and choosing beneficiaries.

A division bench of the high court, headed by chief justice JS Khehar, made the observations while hearing a petition filed by advocate TY Katwa, who sought that the state  government be directed to extend the benefits of the Suvarna Bhoomi Yojane to all small farmers in the state, in the interest of equity.

The bench instructed the government to ensure that the poorest of the poor benefit from the Suvarna Bhoomi Yojane, without any picking and choosing.

Under the scheme, farmers with land holdings of up to five acres can claim a maximum of Rs10,000 for developing up to two acres of their land for horticulture, fish-breeding, agriculture or apiculture.

The financial aid released  to the farmer would be  proportional to the size of his land holding, with eligibility limited to only those farmers with either five acres or less land.

The petitioner had contended that the state government had already collected the signatures of over two lakh beneficiaries under the scheme, on blank bond papers, in flagrant violation of the law.

This would mean that several deserving farmers would not benefit from the scheme, the petitioner held.  The division bench will take up the matter for hearing again on Thursday.